Study Shows Takata's SafeTraK Lane Departure Warning System Improves Safety Performance and Accident Avoidance

PONTIAC, Mich., Oct. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- The University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI) and Takata Corporation have announced the results of a year-long field test of an integrated system of crash warning technologies designed to enhance the safety of the commercial trucking industry.  Takata's SafeTraK Lane Departure system was used exclusively throughout testing.  A few significant results from the integrated vehicle-based safety system (IVBSS) study include:

• Thirty-eight percent (38%) of drivers reported that the integrated warning systems prevented them from potentially having a crash
• Eighty-three percent (83%) of drivers would prefer a truck equipped with the integrated warning systems and would recommend their carrier purchase the system
• In terms of satisfaction, drivers rated:
  • Warnings for lane departures the highest
  • Overall usefulness of lane departure warning second
• The SafeTraK integrated crash warning system used in the study had a statistically significant effect helping drivers maintain lane positions closer to the center
• Overall, drivers responded the warning systems would increase driver safety, making them more aware of the traffic environment around their vehicle and their position in the lane

The Takata SafeTraK system used exclusively in the study yielded extremely positive safety results.  In addition to being used on the commercial truck portion of the study, the Takata SafeTraK system was also used in the passenger car portion of the study.  The UMTRI-led IVBSS program funding was provided by the Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT).

"Partnering with Takata, a company dedicated to automotive safety technology, was a very positive experience for UMTRI," said Jim Sayer, Associate Research Scientist, UMTRI. "The SafeTraK Lane Departure Warning technology contributed significantly to improved driver's road awareness, helping to keep drivers within their lane."

With more than 3.2 million jobs in the U.S. provided by the commercial truck-driving industry, driver safety has been an area of concern for many years.  The Takata SafeTraK system, currently available to the commercial trucking industry, helps drivers better prepare for their long haul trips and react to their real-time driving performance.  

"Today's commercial truck driver faces many distractions while on the road for long hours, including drowsiness," says Kirk Morris, vice president, product management and business development for Takata Electronics. "The SafeTraK system helps drivers maintain their lanes, know when to stop for rest breaks, and measure their on-road driving performance real time.  It is a comprehensive system designed with unique algorithms, and we believe the UMTRI IVBSS study helps prove our SafeTraK system will greatly improve overall road safety for everyone."

On Oct. 20, the U.S. Department of Transportation will present the full results of the UMTRI IVBSS report during a one-day public meeting at Eagle Crest Conference Center in Ypsilanti, Mich. Additional program partners for the IVBSS commercial-truck research include Conway Freight, Eaton Corp., International Truck and Engine Corporation and Battelle.  For more information or to register for the meeting, please visit http://www.umtri.umich.edu/public/ivbss/.  

Takata Corporation is a world-leading manufacture of seatbelts, airbags, steering wheels, electronics, textiles and other innovative total automotive safety systems.  Operating 45 manufacturing facilities in 16 countries around the globe, Takata employs more than 31,000 team members dedicated to our founder Jim Takada's dream of achieving "a day when there will be zero victims due to traffic accidents."

SOURCE Takata Corporation